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Staff Report March 19, 2017OpinionComments Off on Hurd Statement on Healthcare Bill: ‘Insurance is not Healthcare’

In advance of Thursday’s vote overhauling the Affordable Care Act, U.S. Representative Will Hurd released the following statement:

“We must remember, that regardless of its goals, Obamacare has not made healthcare more accessible or more affordable. It has led to expensive and confusing insurance coverage for American families while adding regulations at the expense of small businesses. I see this first hand as I travel the district and hear stories of premiums doubling overnight and outrageous deductibles forcing families to spend their entire savings just to get the care they need.

“And what keeps getting lost in media coverage is this: insurance is not healthcare. Seven years after the Affordable Care Act was signed into law, there are still millions of Texans who cannot access or afford quality healthcare. ‘Rates of the insured’ are irrelevant if these same people cannot afford to receive treatment.

“Obamacare is collapsing, so maintaining the status quo is not an option. While crisscrossing my district all year and driving 1,600 miles across the country last week, I’ve heard loud-and-clear that while the American Health Care Act (AHCA) will increase insurance options and competition, it must help those who were previously uninsurable, and strengthen protections for the aged and disabled on Medicaid.

“This is why I’ve been encouraging Leadership in the House of Representatives to make changes to the AHCA prior to our vote on Thursday. Congress needs to provide states the flexibility to address their most pressing issues. I’ve asked for Medicaid expansion and non-expansion states to be treated equally, and I’ve asked that doctors who take care of these vulnerable populations receive the support they need so that they do not opt-out of treating Medicaid patients all together, further restricting access to care.

“Even after Obamacare is repealed, work still needs to be done like extending and expanding programs like the 1115 Waiver. This is a tool used by States to expand Medicaid access for children, families, and those in rural areas.

“I’ve also told House Leadership I will continue to champion funding for Community Health Centers and increased reimbursements for rural providers, and I believe that any final plan must integrate these critical components. I look forward to reading the final bill and hope that these provisions, which are extremely important to my constituents, are included.”

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A former undercover CIA officer, entrepreneur and cybersecurity expert, Will Hurd is the U.S. Representative for the 23rd Congressional District of Texas. In Washington, he serves on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, as Vice Chair of the Maritime and Border Security Subcommittee on the Committee for Homeland Security, and as the Chairman of the Information Technology Subcommittee on the Oversight and Government Reform Committee.

Staff Report January 16, 2017OpinionComments Off on Hurd on the Hill: Paving the Way for Better Healthcare

“What’s the point of having health insurance anymore?”

I’m often asked this question by constituents who are pummeled by out-of-pocket costs under Obamacare.

It’s a great question. And after six years of this experiment, it is clear that Obamacare has failed the American people. Families face skyrocketing premiums and soaring deductibles, making healthcare more unaffordable than ever. In Texas this year alone, we’ve experienced a 34 percent increase in Obamacare premiums, forcing us to pay more each month just to keep our coverage. Couple that with multiplying deductibles in the thousands of dollars, and it’s no surprise that many people feel like they don’t have coverage at all.

Obamacare is collapsing as we speak. Only five of the original 23 health insurance CO-OPs remain in business, and these failures have cost taxpayers more than $1.8 billion. As insurers continue to drop like dominos, options for healthcare coverage continue to shrink. Currently, over a third of counties nationwide have only one choice for health insurance. That is not a choice – that’s a monopoly.

A modern-day health care model should allow patients—along with their health care providers— to make decisions about their health care needs, instead of a federal administrator. Loving parents working with their local doctor would do a far better job of protecting the health of their children, and caregivers at home know far more about their family’s need than bureaucrats in Washington.

The Good News

The good news is that we are finally on the same page. Eight in ten Americans agree that we need to significantly change or repeal Obamacare altogether, and Congress is responding by repealing Obamacare and paving the way for better healthcare for all Americans.

We already have a replacement plan, and it provides more choices and less top-down mandates. It also makes sure that you never have to worry about being turned away because of pre-existing conditions, age, income, or circumstance. Our plan eliminates unnecessary bureaucracy to accelerate the development of life-saving devices and therapies, and it protects Medicare for today’s seniors, while preserving the program for future generations.

I am fighting with my colleagues to provide relief for millions of struggling families. The end goal is a patient-centered system that lowers costs and provides more choices for the American people.

What to Expect

As we work to replace Obamacare with something better, there will be a stable transition period so that no one has the rug pulled out from underneath them. Patients currently on the healthcare exchange will not lose coverage without a replacement, kids will still be able to stay on their parent’s plans, and patients with preexisting conditions will not be turned away.

Our blueprint lays out a step-by-step process that begins with a budget resolution for fiscal year 2017, authorizing Congress to fast-track repeal legislation with only simple majorities in the House and Senate. This legislation passed last week, paving the way for us to begin in earnest to repeal and replace this job-killing law that has neither made healthcare more affordable nor protected patients. In the coming months, Congress will work to first repeal tax-related provisions, such as the individual mandate that eliminated choice for patients across the country, while maintaining protections for those with pre-existing conditions and strengthening successful programs like Medicare Advantage and Health Savings Accounts.

We are committed to doing this the right way so that every American has access to quality, affordable coverage for years to come. Learn more about our plan at www.abetterway.speaker.gov